couple noobish questions but here it goes.

So i cleaned all the gunk off my chain, looks like it was never cleaned and anything according the guy who installed my tires. It has about 10k worth of crap on it.

I used the grunge brush paired up with kerosene and some rags. After that i found the chain to be of silver color rather then a black color, LOL. I sprayed water over it and tried to wipe it. But it was still wet that the rear sprocket kept having  dirt on the teeth. I didn't get a chance to clean the front sproket.

How dirty can get that front sprocket get? My rear wasn't that bad at all in terms of build up. To get to it, its just those 4-6 8mm bolts. Is there anything else, looks like the clutch level and cable are there, do i have to mess with that?


So i got it as dry as i can and i sprayed on Repsol Moto lube. It comes on clear and i didn't know how much to use. I just gave it a good spray and wet twice around, i wiped off everything else. Is there such thing as too much lube or too little. I didn't ride it yet. I was going to wait a till the morning and do another quick layer and go around the block.

The front sprocket can get pretty bad, a lot of dirt and chain lube can accumulate under that cover. It'd be worth your while to take that cover off and clean out the inside really well. You don't need to disconnect the clutch cable, just unbolt the cover. As far as lube amount the can probably says something like spray on and wipe off excess, so as long as it's not caked with lube you should be ok.

Quote from: LEMON8 on June 01, 2011, 03:34:20 PM
couple noobish questions but here it goes.

So i cleaned all the gunk off my chain, looks like it was never cleaned and anything according the guy who installed my tires. It has about 10k worth of crap on it.

I used the grunge brush paired up with kerosene and some rags. After that i found the chain to be of silver color rather then a black color, LOL. I sprayed water over it and tried to wipe it. But it was still wet that the rear sprocket kept having  dirt on the teeth. I didn't get a chance to clean the front sproket.

How dirty can get that front sprocket get? My rear wasn't that bad at all in terms of build up. To get to it, its just those 4-6 8mm bolts. Is there anything else, looks like the clutch level and cable are there, do i have to mess with that?


So i got it as dry as i can and i sprayed on Repsol Moto lube. It comes on clear and i didn't know how much to use. I just gave it a good spray and wet twice around, i wiped off everything else. Is there such thing as too much lube or too little. I didn't ride it yet. I was going to wait a till the morning and do another quick layer and go around the block.

I would not use water on the chain...just clean with kerosene.....daub dry with a cloth or paper shop towels..

Spray on your chain lube sparingly......you are just trying to put on a protective (thin) coating.....the chain is already lubed inside the o rings.

I let my front sprocket go 11,000 miloes without cleaning...it actually was not too bad...but I clean the chain every 500 miles.....lots of crap inside the case though....I'll probably do the front every 4000 or so..

Cookie

so just those 6 8mm bolts and the cover comes off and i have access to front sprocket?  no need to mess with lever or cable?


also kerosene... will that eat up the tire or paint on the rim?

Quote from: LEMON8 on June 02, 2011, 04:05:38 AM


also kerosene... will that eat up the tire or paint on the rim?

No. Stick a heap of old newspaper under the bike though as it will get messy. Just wipe the excess off with a rag. Kero is great for cleaning all the lube that has flicked off you chain off of your rims. I put the kero in an hand sprayer like an old Ajax kitchen spray bottle and scrub the chain with an old toothbrush.

Just to add, after cleaning with kerosene, the best way to dry it is to take it for a quick ride around the neighborhood.  Not only does this dry off the chain, it also warms it up which most chain lubes require.

Quote from: LEMON8 on June 02, 2011, 04:05:38 AM
so just those 6 8mm bolts and the cover comes off and i have access to front sprocket?  no need to mess with lever or cable?

The cable will be fine, it is attached to the cover but you don't have to remove it...the shifter lever does need to come off to remove the cover...it's not hard, only one bolt that has to be completely removed and the shifter lever just pulls off...

The bike is really easy to maintain, so make sure you do the simple stuff regularily and the bike will treat you right...

Later.

Quote from: madjak30 on June 02, 2011, 09:33:04 AM

Quote from: LEMON8 on June 02, 2011, 04:05:38 AM
so just those 6 8mm bolts and the cover comes off and i have access to front sprocket?  no need to mess with lever or cable?

The cable will be fine, it is attached to the cover but you don't have to remove it...the shifter lever does need to come off to remove the cover...it's not hard, only one bolt that has to be completely removed and the shifter lever just pulls off...

The bike is really easy to maintain, so make sure you do the simple stuff regularily and the bike will treat you right...

Later.

On the shift lever,clean it really well,and mark a straight line from the lever to the shaft.That way you will remember what position it was in for reinstall.I used a sharpie marker.

Quote from: ben2go on June 02, 2011, 12:01:39 PM

Quote from: madjak30 on June 02, 2011, 09:33:04 AM

Quote from: LEMON8 on June 02, 2011, 04:05:38 AM
so just those 6 8mm bolts and the cover comes off and i have access to front sprocket?  no need to mess with lever or cable?

The cable will be fine, it is attached to the cover but you don't have to remove it...the shifter lever does need to come off to remove the cover...it's not hard, only one bolt that has to be completely removed and the shifter lever just pulls off...

The bike is really easy to maintain, so make sure you do the simple stuff regularily and the bike will treat you right...

Later.

On the shift lever,clean it really well,and mark a straight line from the lever to the shaft.That way you will remember what position it was in for reinstall.I used a sharpie marker.

Or just eyeball it and spend the five most annoying minutes of your life getting your shifter back like it was.

Time to bring this thread back from the depths of page 69. Another cleaning agent that you could use is good ole diesel.

Another really good chain degreaser is made by DuPont and it's aptly named "Motorcycle Chain Degreaser". It comes in a red can and every Walmart I've ever been in has it - it will be with the motor oil. Don't expect to find any chain lube back there though.

Diesel fuel is good, yes, but it's a little more "oily" than kerosene so it doesn't dry up. If you get it on your tire it can be hard to get off and also dangerous! Regardless, however, I usually use either the aforementioned DuPont product OR diesel. Never used kerosene myself.

And yeah, chalk up another vote for regularly cleaning your front sprocket area.

Not wanting to start any arguments here, but I have used WD-40 for decades for cleaning my chains, the myth that it makes O-Rings swell up is just that, a myth. It's also what I use to clean the rear wheel or any grime off anything down in the nether region of my bikes, including plastics.

When you add chain lube to your chain, lube the inside only, it will get to the outside soon enough 

 When I first got the GS I could swear it hadn't had a chain cleaning in the 7,000 miles it had on it. Took kerosene to it with a chain brush:



after that I took it for a ride, came back and lubed it with whatever can the PO gave me (a full can i guess that says something about it's maintenance), felt so smooth.

Next task is to clean the front sprocket. Probably do that in my next chain maintenance.

Now that's a good idea where can I get one?

 I got mine at the local bike dealership in their service section but I know they're online if you search for Grunge Brush.

Cheers. 

Quote from: Suzuki Stevo on February 11, 2012, 01:53:04 PM
Not wanting to start any arguments here, but I have used WD-40 for decades for cleaning my chains, the myth that it makes O-Rings swell up is just that, a myth. It's also what I use to clean the rear wheel or any grime off anything down in the nether region of my bikes, including plastics.

When you add chain lube to your chain, lube the inside only, it will get to the outside soon enough 

The active ingredient in WD 40 is very similar to kerosene....like one up or one down on the refining process....it has same basic properties as kero...wotks great....jstu you can buy kero for way cheaper and use more in bucket with brush.

Add lube all over for protection against dirt and corrosion.

Cookie

Quote from: Watevaman on February 11, 2012, 04:41:25 PM
When I first got the GS I could swear it hadn't had a chain cleaning in the 7,000 miles it had on it. Took kerosene to it with a chain brush:



after that I took it for a ride, came back and lubed it with whatever can the PO gave me (a full can i guess that says something about it's maintenance), felt so smooth.

Next task is to clean the front sprocket. Probably do that in my next chain maintenance.

I bought one of those...but don't like it...bristles are far too stiff and course...just sort of scrapes the chain.....doesn't hold much kero and jsut leaves scratch marks in the old lube...

I use artist paint brush with soft bristles......more kero and less rubbing...let the kero do the work and wash off the crud....

Cookie

I buy Chain Cleaner from the shop.

Also, I took off my front sprocket cover, LOTS OF DIRT EVERYWHERE.

Sprayed some of said Chain Cleaner inside and wiped it down, looks good as new now.

Quote from: twocool on February 11, 2012, 06:04:26 PMThe active ingredient in WD 40 is very similar to kerosene....like one up or one down on the refining process....it has same basic properties as kero...wotks great....jstu you can buy kero for way cheaper and use more in bucket with brush.

Add lube all over for protection against dirt and corrosion.

Cookie

WD40 is pretty much just Stoddard Solvent http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_spirit
Whenever I oil the outside of my chain, regardless of weather I want to or not, I still end up oiling the inside of my chain guard. So spaying the inside of the chain just minimizes the Lube Fling that I get anyway,  even when you just lube the inside of a chain, you are still putting more oil on it than the chain can retain. Chain lube is cheap and it doesn't hurt to soak them down, it's cheap insurance. I just try to keep the fling to a minimum, anything flying off the chain is excess in my book